Jawbone and Native-hens

I have not explored the Jawbone Flora and Fauna Reserve in Williamstown for some time. I dropped by on Saturday and went in search of a few birds that I had not seen in a while including the Black-tailed Native-hen. Amongst the Swamphens and Moorhens I found two Native-hens and for the first time got a few images. I have only seen them a few times before. They run to cover and seldom fly so I was surprised to see this one flying a short distance – I realised that I had cut it off from the safety of the lake. The Native-hens are generally quite timid and these two ran back to the water when I paid them too much attention. All the birds feeding on the grass were happy to ignore the joggers, cyclists and dog walkers passing close by but as soon as you looked at the birds using binocs and cameras they spooked. Jawbone is an excellent site for a good variety of birds, great for beginners to get a close look at the various species and good for photography. Covering most of the park along the coastline I can easily pick up 50 species in a few hours. A good place to get your yearly lists going.